Why Marine Ministry Must Look Beyond Western Ports and Integrate Freight Forwarders — NAGAFF Scribe
Three years after the establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, questions remain about its impact, the gaps that persist and what needs to change to unlock Nigeria’s maritime potential.
In this interview with Maria Yusuf and Hannah Tedunjaye, the Secretary General of National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Forwarder Godfrey Emeka Nwosu discusses the ministry’s performance, highlights its achievements, attention to other ports and the integration of freight forwarders into the ministry.
(Q) Three years after the creation of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, how would you assess its performance so far?
The establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, under the leadership of His Excellency Adegboyega Oyetola, brought a new dimension to Nigeria’s maritime sector.
Separating the maritime sector from the former Ministry of Transport and creating a dedicated Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy was a significant step. Nigeria, as a maritime nation, is richly blessed with abundant maritime resources and opportunities which, before the establishment of the ministry, were largely untapped. Upon assumption of office, His Excellency Adegboyega Oyetola hit the ground running, with a clear focus on positioning the ministry as a resource generating and revenue contributing ministry. So far, the results are evident.
Before the establishment of the Ministry, for instance, the fisheries subsector did not receive the level of attention it deserved. Today, there is renewed focus on increasing fish production and ensuring that, after meeting local consumption needs, surplus production can be made available for the market. The ministry has also strengthened stakeholder engagement. Stakeholders and partners in the sector are engaged on a quarterly basis. The essence of these engagements is to review the activities of the ministry, identify gaps and make necessary improvements, while also dropping or adjusting programmes and policies that are not yielding the desired results. If we are to assess the ministry’s performance over the past three years, I would look at it from three different perspectives: the economic impact, the social impact and the political will that has driven the sector.
First, the ministry has contributed to employment creation. People have been employed within the sector and its various subsectors. Second, it has introduced a clearer revenue generation agenda. Before now, the maritime sector was largely under the Ministry of Transport, which served as the supervising ministry for various aspects of transportation, including maritime activities. Today, under the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, there is a stronger focus on revenue generation and contributions to the national treasury. The agencies under the ministry have also become more clearly defined and regulated, while the roles of the various government agencies and stakeholders are becoming clearer. Everybody now has a better understanding of where they belong and what is expected of them.
(Q) Looking critically at the sector today, where are the biggest gaps between the Ministry’s ambitions for the blue economy and the reality on ground?
I will speak from my own perspective as a freight forwarder. The Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy has not really considered the integration of freight forwarders into the activities of the ministry.
The ministry has been doing well in exploring new avenues and expanding the scope of its mandate, but the operators who are essentially the wheels that drive the maritime industry include freight forwarders and professionals involved in logistics and supply chain management. The question is: how well have these operators been considered and factored into the activities and policies of the ministry? I may not be in a position to speak for sectors that I am not directly involved in. Therefore, my assessment of the ministry’s performance and impact will naturally depend on how much its policies and activities have affected my business as a freight forwarder.
To a reasonable extent, we are still hopeful that the ministry will find a way to properly integrate freight forwarding into the Marine and Blue Economy framework, because freight forwarding is an integral part of the maritime and logistics value chain.
(Q) How satisfied are you with the level of collaboration between the Ministry and its agencies in delivering reforms across the maritime sector?
Like I said earlier, there have been a series of engagements and strategic discussions among all the agencies and partners under the ministry. The outcome of these engagements has brought about tremendous improvements in the activities of some of the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) under the ministry. Some of these agencies, as I have said, were previously under the Ministry of Transport and did not have a clearly defined understanding of their roles within the broader MDA structure. With the establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, there has been a deliberate effort to streamline their responsibilities and clearly define their respective roles. The ministry has also helped to create a clearer distinction between the roles of operators and regulators. Agencies that may previously have been involved in activities beyond their core mandates are now being encouraged to focus on their defined responsibilities.
So, through the establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, there has been a conscious effort to streamline the sector, define institutional roles and ensure that the various agencies operate within their mandates under the supervision of the ministry.
(Q) If you were to identify three things that the Ministry must do differently in the next three years, what would they be?
One area I would like to see the ministry pay more attention to in the coming years is the development of other ports. There is an overdue need to develop these ports and decentralise port operations, which are currently concentrated mostly around the Western ports. Nigeria is a maritime nation with a long coastline, and there are other regions where the coastlines have the potential for expansion and better trade activities. So, rather than concentrating port operations within the Western ports alone, there is a need to look at the possibilities in other regions.
We have ports like Calabar Port, Warri Port and Onne Port, among others. These are ports that should also be given attention because of their potential to contribute to trade activities in their respective areas. The development of these ports should therefore form part of the areas the ministry considers as it continues to expand the Marine and Blue Economy sector. There is a need to look beyond the ports that are already receiving most of the attention and explore what other ports across the country can offer. Apart from the ports, there are also other channels of water trade that can be improved. Nigeria has different waterways and coastal areas that have the potential to support trade activities, and these should also be considered. I therefore look forward to the ministry going beyond the concentration on the Western waterways and looking at other parts of the country where there are opportunities to develop maritime and water-based trade.
(Q) If you were to give the Ministry a score out of 1-100 for its first three years, what score would you give it?
I would rate their performance as average. The reason is that there is no better way to assess or evaluate performance than through engagement. I keep referring to engagement because it provides feedback and helps you understand the reactions of stakeholders, identify the areas that require more attention, and know where improvements are needed.
Overall, I would say they have done fairly well. On a scale of 1 to 100, I would give them 60%. In just three years, the extent to which they have spread their activities and established themselves within the maritime and even the trade environment is something that should be commended.
I particularly commend their efforts in the areas of policy and advocacy, as well as their involvement in international policies and engagements. They have also been pushing for bills and supporting efforts at the National Assembly to get certain things to work within the sector. These are areas where their contribution can be seen, and they deserve recognition for that.
A recent example is the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency, NPERA. It is one of the developments under the Marine and Blue Economy sector, and the bill did not come about without the input of the ministry.
(Q) NAGAFF’s 100% Compliance Team has threatened an indefinite strike over alleged intimidation, unlawful arrests, container detention, extortion and harassment by the Maritime Police at the ports. What steps is it taking to address the concerns and prevent the situation from escalating into an industrial action that could disrupt port operations?
NAGAFF is fundamentally an advocacy organisation. Our advocacy covers trade facilitation, ensuring that government policies are properly implemented, promoting obedience to the rule of law, and making sure that freight forwarders and practitioners are adequately protected. So, when we raise concerns, the intention is not to create conflict but to draw attention to issues that affect our members and the wider port community and seek a solution through the appropriate channels.
The issue of the proposed strike should therefore not be misunderstood as NAGAFF preparing to go to war with the Maritime Police or the Nigerian Police. The issues we raised are based on what we believe are facts and concerns that need to be addressed. What we are asking for is dialogue. We want the Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) of the Maritime Police to make time to meet with us, so that we can sit down, look at these issues together and understand what is happening.
If you look closely at the circular that is going around, we are not saying that we are immediately embarking on an industrial strike. It is more about calling the attention of the Maritime Police to what is going on and the need for the issues to be addressed. We are therefore looking forward to an invitation from the AIG Maritime Police. We believe that as a law abiding freight forwarding association and as a government security agency whose responsibility includes the protection of lives and property, there should be room for both sides to come together and find a way forward.
For now, it is not about NAGAFF going into the port to confront the Police or cause any problem. As an advocacy group, NAGAFF will continue to take the lead in ensuring that peace and tranquillity are maintained within the port environment. The National President will be meeting with the AIG Maritime, alongside some high level members of NAGAFF, to discuss these concerns, understand the issues from both sides and see how they can be streamlined. Our priority is to resolve the matter through dialogue and ensure that normal activities continue within the port.
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